US Governmental Interagency Programs, Opportunities, and Collaboration

2008 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 447-453
Author(s):  
H. Chen ◽  
M. Perchonok

Improving the quality, value, and safety of national food supplies is the common mission of several Federal agencies. Under different authorities, these agencies conduct basic and applied research, develop curriculum at higher educational institutions, and disseminate new scientific knowledge about food processing, formulation, and preservation to a broad range of stakeholders. Emerging food processing technologies, including various thermal and nonthermal processes, as well as chemical processes, have received increased attention and investment in recent years. Some agencies dealing with Emerging Technologies include the Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), and Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS), and all of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The U.S. Army Natick Research Center of Department of Defense (DOD), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of Department of Human Health Service (DHHS) also are involved in this research area. These agencies have their vision, mission, strategic goals, and current programs and activities related to emerging food processing technologies. The synergy of effective collaboration and cooperation among all stakeholders is the key to generating an impact greater than the simple sum of all.

2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 30-46
Author(s):  
Shari R. Veil

To lessen the threat of an intentional or naturally occurring livestock disease, the Animal Plant Health Inspection Service of the United States Department of Agriculture introduced the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), encouraging the use of innovative tools such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to track cattle across the country. In this study, the author examines the barriers to adoption of NAIS and RFID technology as risk-reduction tools. Diffusion of innovation literature is used to analyze a case study of a state livestock association advocating the rejection of NAIS and RFID technology. Implications for the diffusion of risk reduction tools are provided.


2015 ◽  
Vol 148 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stacy M. Hishinuma ◽  
Paul L. Dallara ◽  
Mohammad A. Yaghmour ◽  
Marcelo M. Zerillo ◽  
Corwin M. Parker ◽  
...  

AbstractThe walnut twig beetle (WTB),Pityophthorus juglandisBlackman (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), vectors a fungus,Geosmithia morbidaKolařík, Freeland, Utley, and Tisserat (Ascomycota: Hypocreales), which colonises and kills the phloem of walnut and butternut trees,JuglansLinnaeus (Juglandaceae). Over the past two decades, this condition, known as thousand cankers disease (TCD), has led to the widespread mortality ofJuglansspecies in the United States of America. Recently the beetle and pathogen were discovered on severalJuglansspecies in northern Italy. Little is known about the extra-generic extent of host acceptability and suitability for the WTB. We report the occurrence of both the WTB andG. morbidain three species of wingnut,Pterocarya fraxinifoliaSpach,Pterocarya rhoifoliaSiebold and Zuccarini, andPterocarya stenopterade Candolle (Juglandaceae) growing in the United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, National Clonal Germplasm Repository collection in northern California (NCGR) and in the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden in southern California, United States of America. In two instances (once inP. stenopteraand once inP. fraxinifolia) teneral (i.e., brood) adult WTB emerged and were collected more than four months after infested branch sections had been collected in the field. Koch’s postulates were satisfied with an isolate ofG. morbidafromP. stenoptera, confirming this fungus as the causal agent of TCD in this host. A survey of the 37PterocaryaKunth accessions at the NCGR revealed that 46% of the trees had WTB attacks and/or symptoms ofG. morbidainfection. The occurrence of other subcortical Coleoptera associated withPterocaryaand the first occurrence of the polyphagous shot hole borer, a species nearEuwallacea fornicatusEichhoff (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), inJuglansare also documented.


2007 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norman L. Dart ◽  
Gary A. Chastagner

The number and retail value of plants destroyed in Washington State nurseries due to Phytophthora ramorum quarantine efforts was estimated using Emergency Action Notification forms (EANs) issued by the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service between 2004 and 2005. Data collected from EANs indicate that during this period 17,266 containerized nursery plants were destroyed at 32 nurseries, worth an estimated $423,043. The mean loss per nursery was estimated at $11,188 in 2004, $11,798 in 2005, and at $13,220 per nursery over the 2-year period. Accepted for publication 26 January 2007. Published 8 May 2007.


HortScience ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 27 (11) ◽  
pp. 1176g-1176
Author(s):  
R. L. Fery ◽  
P. D. Dukes

The Agricultural Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture announced the release of `Bettergro Blackeye' southernpea on 24 July 1991. The new cultivar is well adapted for production throughout the southern United States where it can be expected to produce excellent yields of high quality, blackeye-type peas. `Bettergro Blackeye' outyielded the `Pinkeye Purple Hull-BVR' check in the 1986, 1987, 1988, and 1989 Regional Southernpea Cooperative Trials by 34.8, 14.3, 12.6, and 20.9%, respectively. Canned samples of fresh `Bettergro Blackeye' peas scored well in three years of quality evaluation tests. The new cultivar is resistant to the cowpea curculio, the major insect pest of the southernpea in southeastern production areas, and root knot, a severe root disease incited by several species of the root-knot nematode. `Bettergro Blackeye' plants have a greater tendency to produce a second crop than plants of most southernpea cultivars.


HortScience ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 449E-449
Author(s):  
Kim E. Hummer

The pear, Pyrus L., originated in prehistoric times. Records of its cultivation date back 3000 years both in Europe, with the ancient Romans and Greeks, and in Asia, with the Chinese. Pear culture was significant in France and England by the 16th century. The European golden age of pear improvement occurred from the 17th through the 19th centuries. The pear genetic resource collection for the United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, National Plant Germplasm System is maintained at Corvallis, Ore. This collection preserves more than 2000 diverse pear accessions, represents 26 species, and includes more than 410 heirloom cultivars. At least 10 of the cultivars have obscure origins from the ancient Roman, Greek, or Chinese cultures. Another dozen are at least 400 years old, and more than 250 were introduced during the European golden age. Another 120 “antique” cultivars of the collection were introduced during the first half of the 1900s. The “big four” economically important Pyrus communis L. cultivars in the United States, `Bartlett', which originated in 1777; `Anjou', late 1700s; `Bosc', 1807; and `Comice', 1845; are also represented. Origin and background information for these heirloom clones is web accessible through the Germplasm Resource Information Network (GRIN) database. Although many ancient pear genotypes have been lost, the Repository staff continues to search for significant heirloom cultivars that are not yet represented. Besides having direct value in crop improvement, these plants are a significant part of our human heritage. Their preservation is a sacred trust.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy L Widmer ◽  
Jose M. Costa

There is an increasing need to supply the world with more food as the population continues to grow. Research on mitigating the effects of plant diseases to improve crop yield and quality can help provide more food without increasing the land area devoted to farming. National Program 303 (NP 303) within the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service is dedicated to research across multiple fields in plant pathology. This review article highlights the research impact within NP 303 between 2015 and 2020, including case studies on wheat and citrus diseases and the National Plant Disease Recovery System, which provide specific examples of this impact.


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